Rangers Lose Tough Series Finale to Dodgers

Photo by Richard Rodriguez/Getty Images

April 20, 2025

Dodgers 1, Rangers 0

ARLINGTON, Texas (Apr 20) — The Texas Rangers battled on Easter Sunday, but their basket remained empty as they lost to the Los Angeles Dodgers, 1–0. A sacrifice fly by Freddie Freeman accounted for the only offense for either team. From here, the Rangers fly to the West Coast to begin a three-game set against the Athletics. That series opener will be on Tuesday evening. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 pm Pacific at Sutter Health Park in Sacramento, California. Left-hander Patrick Corbin (1–0, 3.86 ERA) will get the ball for the Rangers, and righty Osvaldo Bido (2–1, 2.61 ERA) will start for the Athletics.

The Dodgers, meanwhile, will head to the Windy City for a quick two-game series against the Chicago Cubs, starting on Tuesday. First pitch is scheduled for 6:40 pm Central at Wrigley Field. Righty Dustin May (1–1, 1.06 ERA) will get the start for the Dodgers, while lefty Shota Imanaga (2–1, 2.22 ERA) will toe the slab for the Cubs.

One is the Loneliest Number

The Dodgers scored their run in the top of the eighth. With Rangers reliever Chris Martin pitching, Will Smith entered the game as a pinch-hitter for Austin Barnes. He led off with a single to left.

Up next was Shohei Ohtani, who drew a free pass from Martin. Smith scurried to third when Mookie Betts flied to right.

On deck was Freeman, who drove in Smith with a sacrifice fly to left.

Frustrating End for the Rangers

Giving up the deciding run in the eighth was tough enough for the Rangers. The final out, however, was even tougher.

With Tanner Scott on the mound for the Dodgers, Wyatt Langford reached on an infield single that was bobbled by Miguel Rojas at second.

Kevin Pillar popped out to second and Josh Jung lined to left to put two outs on the board.

With Jake Burger at the plate, Langford attempted to steal second. He was called out on the close play, and the Rangers used their challenge. The sellout crowd of 38,100 were convinced that Langford was safe, but second base umpire Vic Carapazza saw things differently.

The challenge was unsuccessful, ending the game.

What Went Right for the Dodgers

The Dodgers featured some good pitching all series long. Sunday afternoon was no different, as they held the Rangers scoreless.

Also, Freeman delivered a late-inning RBI with his sacrifice fly in the eighth.

What Went Wrong for the Dodgers

The only thing the Dodgers could have done better in this game was score more runs. Most of the time, one run isn’t going to be enough to win. There are times like Sunday where you get lucky, however.

Tough Luck for Mahle

Rangers starter Tyler Mahle pitched very well on Sunday. He did not factor into the decision, despite tossing seven scoreless frames. His line was 7 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 4 K, 91 pitches/57 strikes. Mahle, who entered the day leading the AL in opp. BA and hits allowed per 9, held the Dodgers 2-for-23 with a double, single, and three walks, lowering his ERA from 0.92 to 0.68. The right-hander’s 0.68 mark is the lowest over a pitcher’s first five starts of a season in franchise history, ahead of Rick Honeycutt’s 0.72 ERA from April 6-29, 1983.

Since allowing one earned run over 1 2/3 innings in his season debut on March 29 against the Boston Red Sox, Mahle has allowed one earned run in 25 innings. Paired with his six scoreless frames on April 15 against the Los Angeles Angels, this marks the first time in Mahle’s career to post back-to-back outings of six or more scoreless innings. The last Rangers starter to log seven or more frames and two or fewer hits was Nathan Eovaldi on August 29, 2024 against the Chicago White Sox.

After giving up the run scored by Smith, Martin was stuck with the loss. He is now 0–3 on the season with an ERA of 2.61.

Glasnow’s Short Afternoon

Dodgers starter Tyler Glasnow threw four-plus scoreless innings. His line was 3 H, 1 BB, 6 K, 52 pitches/36 strikes. He was removed from the game with lower leg cramps. Glasnow threw one pitch to Burger in the bottom of the fifth, then was lifted for reliever Luis García. Head athletic trainer Thomas Albert and manager Dave Roberts tended to him in the fourth inning. In four career starts against the Rangers, Glasnow has posted a 0.38 ERA with 32 strikeouts.

Reliever Ben Casparius earned the win after pitching an inning and two thirds with one strikeout. He improves to 2–0 on the year with an ERA of 4.11.

Despite giving up Langford’s single in the bottom of the ninth, Scott earned his eighth save of the season.

Bochy’s Postgame Comments

After the game, Rangers manager Bruce Bochy took his usual seat in the interview room to give his thoughts on the ending of Sunday’s game. “From the dugout, we thought the call would get overturned after watching it on the board,” he said. “It looked like Wyatt’s foot came down on the bag before he got the tag on him, but again, that’s without taking as good a look at it as the guys in New York.”